


If Hordak was Trapped in a Portal: A Theory on an Earlier Show Storyline

by Solitude_Rising



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Story, Early story theory, Original show plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2020-12-06
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:20:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27658079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Solitude_Rising/pseuds/Solitude_Rising
Summary: Huntara wasn't intended to appear in Season 3. We would have seen Beast Island instead of the Crimson Waste. Catra would have been exiled to Beast Island. Entrapta wouldn't have come out of the portal's 'perfect reality'.What would the show have been like if Hordak's ultimate fate had been to be trapped in a portal?
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Entrapta/Hordak (She-Ra)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 16





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> To any returning readers from my _Origin of Sin_ fic, hello again! If you're just joining me, welcome!
> 
> Remember Entrapta's emotional farewell to the Best Friend Squad at the end of Season 3? _"It was nice being friends with you."_ I've dared to ask the question: what if it was not Queen Angella, but Entrapta that had been sacrificed to close the portal at the end of Season 3? I've wondered if this might actually have been the show's writers' original idea. Following Entrapta and Hordak's progress up until that point, I think there's logical reason to believe that this had been Entrapta's originally intended fate.
> 
> From this starting point, I looked over the show again as a whole and started considering what other possible changes could have been made to the overall story before arriving at the final version of the show that we got. The following is the result of my considerations. This is a fan theory essay outlining my thoughts on an initial storyline that I believe may have been developed for the show. It's not a fanfic, but something that I thought others might find interesting to read. I've attempted to recconstruct what I think the show's writers originally intended for the show, focusing in particular on Season 3 onward. Some of the changes are quite drastic.

I’ve been giving thought to the overall story and plot of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power lately. I realised there were moments and developments in the later seasons of the show that struck me as odd, out of place, random or convoluted, and some scenes that hinted or foreshadowed future events never seemed to pay off. The following is my attempt at reconstructing what I believe may have been an original storyline for the series before alterations were made to create the final form that made it to screen. This was formed from my observations of the series and picking up on elements and evidence of a base storyline that was followed. In this reconstructed ‘earlier’ version of the show’s story, there are notable differences in events and outcomes, but the overall structure and tone and the main plot points of the storyline remain similar to the final version that we got.

Seasons 1 & 2

The first two seasons remain largely the same in plot with Adora leaving the Horde and joining the Rebellion, Catra becoming her nemesis, and Entrapta being left behind in the Fright Zone and joining the Horde.

Season 3

Where this earlier storyline starts to diverge from the final form is in Season 3. I believe the Crimson Waste was created as an alternate location to replace Beast Island. Originally, the Best Friend Squad would have travelled to Beast Island in search of Mara’s message and Hordak was to exile Catra there for lying about Shadow Weaver’s escape. Catra would have found Adora and her friends at Beast Island and captured Adora as she did in the Season 3 that we saw. Scorpia may not have originally been intended to join Catra in exile.

Huntara may not initially have been intended for an appearance in Season 3 as well. She may have been a later addition as her presence seems unnecessary to the main story at this point. Instead, it’s possible that the original intention was for the Best Friend Squad to discover King Micah on Beast Island in Season 3. So, Glimmer would have been reunited with her father much earlier. This may have been the original reason for Micah’s presence in the ‘perfect reality’ created by the portal’s activation. In an earlier version of the story, Micah had already returned to Bright Moon. After Adora’s capture by Catra on Beast Island, Glimmer and Bow would have escaped with Micah back to Bright Moon.

The development of Hordak and Entrapta’s relationship would have stayed the same. But a critical difference would have been in the final outcome. I do not believe Queen Angella was originally intended to be sacrificed to close the portal. This was going to be Entrapta’s final role in the story. Realising that the portal was too dangerous, Entrapta would have been the one to sacrifice herself to close the portal she and Hordak had created. She was the only one who knew how to do it. Her explanation to the Best Friend Squad of how to close the portal and the final tone of her last words to them: “It was nice being friends with you.” makes more sense when viewed as her final farewell to them. It would have been more fitting for Entrapta, as one of the creators of the portal, to be the one to shut it down. She would have been the one trapped in the portal in the end.

Catra’s actions would have remained similar in that she would still have been responsible for stopping Entrapta from warning Hordak about the dangers of the portal and then activating it. But I do not believe that Catra was originally going to send Entrapta to Beast Island. She would likely have simply left Entrapta after incapacitating her and proceeded with pushing Hordak forward with the plan to open the portal.

With the key difference of Entrapta being the one to sacrifice herself to close the portal, Season 3 would have ended the same, with reality being restored, Adora destroying the portal machine, and Catra escaping with Hordak. 

Season 4

Entrapta’s sacrifice to the portal at the end of Season 3 would have left Hordak grief-stricken and would become his source of hatred toward the princesses. His first scenes in his broken Sanctum in the first episode of Season 4 showed him clearly dealing with the grief of having lost Entrapta. I believe the tone of these scenes make more sense when viewed in the context of Hordak mourning the loss of Entrapta to the portal. The fact that Entrapta was missing for much of Season 4 (we didn’t see her again until the Beast Island episode near the end of the season) is also explained by the idea that, originally, she was supposed to be trapped in the portal at this point, and would not have reappeared until the very end of the show. She had to be written back into the show later. When Adora, Bow and Swift Wind went to rescue her from Beast Island, Micah was brought in together with her, so they ended up rescuing two people from Beast Island. A convenient coincidence. In the original storyline, they should only have found Micah on Beast Island in Season 3 when searching for Mara’s signal. The presence of First Ones tech on Beast Island is evidence of the original intention that it was going to be the location of Mara’s ship (which was later changed to the Crimson Waste).

Catra, feeling guilt over her role in Entrapta’s loss (having stopped her from warning Hordak about the portal), would likely have encouraged Hordak in blaming the princesses for Entrapta’s loss as well. This would have brought them into partnership with the shared goal of defeating the princesses and conquering the rest of Etheria. Hordak’s primary motivation throughout this season would have been revenge against the princesses for Entrapta’s loss rather than the anger at her betrayal that we got. Catra would have remained quiet about her betrayal of Entrapta and placed blame on the princesses for her loss as well.

At Bright Moon, Queen Angella, now reunited with King Micah, would acknowledge that Glimmer’s choice to disobey her and rescue Adora from the Fright Zone had been right. She would make the decision to step down as queen of Bright Moon and declare Glimmer as the new queen, saying she was ‘ready’.

Tension and suspicion would arise between Angella, Micah and Shadow Weaver as Glimmer begins to accept magical tutoring and advice from Shadow Weaver who helped her in infiltrating the Fright Zone before. Glimmer’s friendship with Adora and Bow may still have been tested by her acceptance of Shadow Weaver’s counsel too.

On the Horde’s side, Catra would possibly have recruited Huntara in this season. Huntara may have remained closer to her original character roots as a bounty hunter for hire here. Her addition to the Horde would have given them a boost against the princesses in battle. Scorpia would still have eventually left the Horde to join the princesses after finally acknowledging Catra’s betrayal of Entrapta and realising that she is not her friend.

After the capture of Salineas, Hordak would have ‘remained in the field’ and sent Catra back to the Fright Zone as he made his way by ship with his armies to Bright Moon for a final invasion, conquering more coastal regions along the way. Unlike the final story we got, Hordak would not have returned to the Fright Zone after Catra, but would have continued to take the lead in launching a final attack on Bright Moon by sea. The scene that we saw where Glimmer glares at Hordak standing above the flames of a conquered coastal region suggested an upcoming fight between them. I believe this was meant to hint at her upcoming final battle with him in what would have been the Season 4 finale.

The finale of Season 4 would have seen a final battle at Bright Moon between Hordak and the princesses led by Queen Glimmer, whilst Adora and Scorpia, following Light Hope’s instructions to ‘rebalance the planet’, would have returned to the Fright Zone to reconnect Scorpia with the Black Garnet. Perhaps with Huntara, Catra would have faced Adora and Scorpia and their rivalries and betrayals would have come to the forefront. But when Scorpia finally connects with the Black Garnet and activates the Heart of Etheria, everything is brought to a standstill as magic threatens to tear the planet apart. Hordak is on the verge of conquering Bright Moon when the Heart of Etheria’s activation brings the battle to a halt. Adora would realise that Light Hope has deceived them and would save Etheria by breaking her sword.

Hordak would likely have found out about Catra’s role in Entrapta’s loss during Season 4’s final battle. It’s possible that Glimmer may have been the one to tell him about Catra’s betrayal of Entrapta (having heard it from Scorpia, Adora, or Entrapta herself before she sacrificed herself at the end of Season 3). The revelation would have driven him to madness and he would have tried to kill Glimmer in his fury. Hordak’s attempt to strike Glimmer still made it into the final show that we got. There would have been no final confrontation between Hordak and Catra in the Season 4 finale.

Season 4 would still end with Horde Prime’s arrival. Only Hordak and Glimmer would have been captured from Bright Moon and brought aboard the Horde flagship though. Catra (and Huntara) would likely have surrendered to Adora and Scorpia in the Fright Zone.

Double Trouble was a later addition to Season 4 in place of Huntara who was moved to appear earlier in Season 3 instead (this had occurred so that she would fill the spot left by what should have been the earlier discovery of Micah). As a result of this, Double Trouble inherited some of what would have been Huntara’s character profile, such as being a mercenary for hire. Beast Island would not have been introduced so late toward the end of Season 4 since it had already been visited in Season 3. And Entrapta, trapped in the portal from the end of Season 3, would not have reappeared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading to the end of this, folks. Please do feel free to share your thoughts and opinions on my theories below. Do you think the above ideas might have been an early possibility for the show?
> 
> I'll be going into Season 5 in the second part, so stay tuned!


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A look at what an earlier Season 5 might have been like and possible reasons for changing the show's storyline.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is going to be posted in 3 parts now. In this update, we take a look at a potential earlier version of Season 5 and explore the possible reasons why changes were made to the show's story.

Season 5

Now captives of Horde Prime, Hordak would have been subjected to reconditioning whilst Glimmer would have been kept for information about the Heart of Etheria. Catra would not have been with them. Rather than Catra, Glimmer would have been the one forced to witness Hordak’s horrific ‘purification’ at Horde Prime’s hands. By chance, the First Ones crystal from Hordak’s armour may have fallen into her possession before Hordak is stripped of it. She would later return the crystal to him and it would trigger flashes of his memories of Etheria. In this earlier version of the show’s story, we would likely have seen more of Horde Prime and Hordak’s relationship and interaction.

Catra (and Huntara) would have been brought back to the princesses by Adora and Scorpia, and Catra would reluctantly have joined the Rebellion against their common enemy of Horde Prime. Instead of Entrapta, Catra would have joined Adora and Bow in travelling to Space in search of Glimmer. Huntara would have stayed behind with the others on Etheria. Whilst in Space, Adora and Catra would have to work together and would begin to work out their differences and feelings toward one another. In the final show that we got, with Catra been captured by Horde Prime, not much time was left in the last half of Season 5 for Catra and Adora’s relationship to develop. So, Catra’s redemption arc and the development of her and Adora’s relationship had to be compressed and fast-tracked into the last few episodes. I believe an earlier version of the story would have remedied that.

In the Season 5 we saw, two rescues occurred: first in Catra saving Glimmer, then in Catra being rescued by Adora, Bow, Glimmer and Entrapta. But originally, I think this was just going to be one rescue: Adora, Bow and Catra were meant to infiltrate the Horde flagship to rescue Glimmer. This might have involved a confrontation between a reconditioned Hordak and Adora instead of the emotional Catra/Adora fight we got. Wrong Hordak was an extra character added to the story as well to highlight Hordak’s potential for good under different circumstances.

Horde Prime would proceed with the chipping of Etherians, turning Micah against Angella and the princesses against one another. Adora and her crew would proceed to Krytis to discover Horde Prime’s weakness in magic and meet Melog before finally returning to Etheria. Shadow Weaver, Castaspella and Angella would agree to work together to find the crystal of Arxia in order to disable the Heart of Etheria and free its magic. More of Hordak’s memories of Etheria would perhaps resurface as he returns with Horde Prime to Etheria.

The Season 5 finale would have worked out similarly to what we got, except that Bow would take Entrapta’s place in disabling the chips from the start, Glimmer would have joined the remaining princesses against the Horde and chipped forces, and Adora would have journeyed to the Heart of Etheria by herself. Catra and Shadow Weaver would have found Adora in time and Shadow Weaver would still have sacrificed herself. Together, Catra and Adora would have disabled the Heart of Etheria and released its magic.

When Etheria’s magic is released, Hordak’s memories would return fully to him. He would remember Entrapta and turn on Horde Prime, killing him. In this version, Hordak would have been solely responsible for Horde Prime’s death as opposed to She-Ra purging Prime’s essence from Hordak. Then, as the Horde flagship is overrun by Etheria’s freed magic, Hordak would open another portal to Despondos using Horde technology. Within the portal, he would see Entrapta and enter after her. The show would end with the Rebellion victorious on Etheria and Hordak reunited with Entrapta in the portal.

I believe Hordak and Entrapta’s eventual fate of being trapped together in a portal was foreshadowed back in Season 3 when he saved her from the portal explosion in his Sanctum. Significantly, we saw him perform his first selfless act by grabbing Entrapta’s arm to pull her from the exploding portal. I suspect that what we may have seen in the show’s original finale was a reversal of this Season 3 moment, with Entrapta reaching out from the portal to take Hordak’s hand and leading him in to join her. Finishing the show with Hordak trapped in a portal to Despondos would then have brought him in line with his original Masters of the Universe descriptions, where he is trapped in the dimension of Despondos before later emerging on Eternia where he would encounter Skeletor and He-Man.

Why Change the Story?

The above is a reconstruction of what I believe to be an earlier version of the show’s storyline. The final version of the show that we got may have been the result of significant alterations to an earlier storyline that resembled this one. Key changes were made in the timing of Micah’s appearance, the fate of Entrapta, the significance of Catra’s role and Hordak’s lead, and additional characters like Double Trouble and Wrong Hordak were fitted in too. I suspect there were a number of reasons for these changes which may have included:

\- Reducing the emotional impact of the original story – Sacrificing Entrapta to the portal at the end of Season 3 may have been deemed too ‘upsetting’ for younger viewers who may have become attached to her character by this point. So, this was changed by substituting Entrapta with Queen Angella who was judged to be a more ‘expendable’, though still important, character. This was probably the most significant alteration from the original storyline which brought about other changes in characters and events.

\- Reducing the severity of Catra’s actions – This may not have been the first consideration of the show’s creators, but it’s possible that having Catra be responsible for Entrapta’s loss in the portal at the end of Season 3 was thought to be too severe a crime for her to commit. Thus, Entrapta was ‘saved’ by having Catra just send her to Beast Island instead, a less severe fate than being trapped in the portal.

\- Entrapta returning – The show’s creators may have realised Entrapta’s potential to be a well-liked character and ultimately decided not to remove her from the story. Sacrificing her at the end of Season 3 would have taken her out of the picture for the rest of the show.

\- Increasing Catra’s prominence and agency in the story by: making her directly responsible for Entrapta’s disappearance in Season 3, boldly asserting her power over Hordak and deceiving and manipulating him in Season 4, and making her the focus of Horde Prime’s attention in Season 5. In the earlier storyline, Catra’s responsibility for and control over consequences and outcomes may have been more indirect and less independent, as she would not have intended for Entrapta’s loss at the end of Season 3, her manipulation of Hordak in Season 4 may have been more subtle, and she would have been with Adora from the start of Season 5.

\- Creating more emotional complexity for Glimmer by having her go through the grief of losing her mother. This also presented a challenge for her friendship with Adora and Bow in Season 4.

\- Huntara’s earlier introduction in Season 3 instead of Season 4 made way for Double Trouble’s character that served as non-binary representation on the show. However, I do not think it likely that this was an initial reason for changing the storyline.

\- The Crimson Waste was created to replace Beast Island in Season 3, so that the discovery of Micah could be delayed until the next season. He would be a replacement for the loss of Queen Angella after the end of Season 3.

\- Hordak and Entrapta’s final fate of being trapped in a portal together may have struck some as too emotionally-heavy and tragic for young audiences. So, it was changed to a more positive ending where Hordak saved Entrapta from Horde Prime and both ‘survived’ to live free on Etheria.

\- In the show that we got, Adora’s role in saving Hordak from Horde Prime’s possession at the end of Season 5 allowed for a moment of connection to be made between Hordak and Adora. This was probably not in the original story plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Does any of this sound plausible? Would this earlier storyline have made more sense than what we got? Or do you think the final version of the show that we saw was ultimately better? Thoughts and opinions are welcome in comments!
> 
> Next update: final thoughts.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Final thoughts on theorized changes to the show's storyline.

Final Thoughts

This is all from my own guesswork, but I’ve tried to come at this from the perspective of writing for an animated TV show aimed at younger as well as older audiences. I reiterate that everything I’ve written here is simply my own theories and thoughts about the show. The above version of the show’s story is what I suspect an earlier version of it might have looked like. I believe this ‘earlier’ storyline is the reason for why some things might seem out-of-place or convoluted in the show that we got. The essential structure and tone of an original story plan and certain elements from it were maintained, but significant alterations were made in the plot and details.

Had the story not been altered as much, certain scenes, actions and events might have made more sense and been better paced at some points, such as Hordak’s brooding grief at the start of Season 4 which would have made more sense in the context of having lost Entrapta to the portal, and Catra and Adora’s relationship would have had more time to develop throughout the whole of Season 5 if Catra had not become a third captive of Horde Prime’s. And other scenes might not have seemed as out-of-place and random, such as Glimmer’s glare at Hordak as he stood above a burning coastal region after conquering Salineas, and Hordak’s attempt to strike down Glimmer with metal wreckage at the end of Season 4 right before their capture by Horde Prime.

I suspect the decision to make Catra Horde Prime’s third captive in Season 5, as well as placing more focus on her, was an attempt to link her, and by extension Adora, with Horde Prime, the final villain of the show. This unfortunately reduced the amount of screen time that we may have otherwise had to see more of Hordak’s relationship with Horde Prime. And Catra’s rescue halfway into Season 5 left little time to address her past wrongdoings and build her relationship with Adora up again. Her apologies to Entrapta and Scorpia were brief and the development of her romantic relationship with Adora had to be fast-tracked as a result. Her deception of Hordak over Entrapta was likely not intended to ever be directly addressed in the original storyline, as she would have been separated from him from the start of Season 5 and would not have faced him directly again.

A lot of content and character development was packed into Season 5 though, even the less prominent princesses had some spotlight, and the show came full circle with Catra and Adora. Some of the story changes I’ve talked about above are understandable when considering the wide audience that was being written for, and other changes may have occurred to benefit certain major characters, particularly Catra.

From a storytelling perspective, I personally feel it would have been more fitting for Hordak to end up trapped in the portal with Entrapta. That was the fate for them that the narrative logically seemed to be leading toward up until the end of Season 3. And it would have made the time they spent working together on building the portal machine in Hordak’s Sanctum more poignant and significant. Hordak’s bitterness toward the princesses in Season 4 would also have made more sense in the context of his grief for Entrapta’s loss and the resulting blame and hatred he would have directed at the princesses for it.

His return to Horde Prime at the end of Season 4 may not have been intentional in this early storyline too, as he may have been largely motivated by revenge against the princesses before his capture instead. Seeking to return to Horde Prime throughout Season 4 may have been the result of the decision to ‘save’ Entrapta from the portal at the end of Season 3 and the accompanying invention of Catra’s lies to Hordak to support it. Hordak’s desire to see Entrapta again on the battlefield in Season 4 was a motivation that contradicted his ultimate goal of returning to Horde Prime. It may have been the case that these contradicting motivations did not exist in the show’s original storyline, which would have seen Hordak acting primarily on a desire for vengeance for Entrapta’s loss. The development of this intense emotional pain and drive for another person in Hordak would have served to further ‘taint’ him in Horde Prime’s eyes.

The Season 4 that we saw preserved Hordak’s anger at the princesses, but the reason for it was changed to a belief in Entrapta’s betrayal courtesy of Catra’s deception. This false belief in her betrayal is a less potent reason for Hordak’s anger than her loss to the portal, so Catra’s reminders of Horde Prime’s imminent arrival could have been part of the alterations to the story, to provide additional motivation for Hordak’s increased aggression and actions against the princesses and Rebellion in Season 4.

Ultimately, Hordak and Entrapta were still reunited at the end of the show, but the manner of their reunion was made less tragic and more positive by bringing them to Etheria instead of being trapped together in a portal. I believe this diminished the emotional impact that their reunion could have had though, and it created a departure from Hordak’s prior portrayals in his Masters of the Universe incarnations, where he was known to be trapped in Despondos prior to returning on Eternia. However, in saving Entrapta from sacrificing herself to the portal at the end of Season 3, she was able to return in an active role in Season 5. In the original plan, she would have been absent from Seasons 4 and 5, only appearing again at the very end to be reunited with Hordak.

So, do you think it was better that we got to see a confrontation between Catra and Hordak and Double Trouble betraying Catra at the end of Season 4, rather than a final battle between Hordak and Queen Glimmer and the princesses and Catra facing Adora and Scorpia again?

Was it a better decision to leave the discovery of Beast Island and King Micah to Season 4, as opposed to reuniting him with Glimmer and Angella earlier in Season 3?

Was it a good thing that we got a new character in Double Trouble, instead of having Huntara play a bigger role in Season 4?

Was it more interesting seeing Catra as Horde Prime’s hostage? Or would you have preferred to see more of Hordak’s relationship with Horde Prime and Catra working with Adora and her friends from the start of Season 5?

Are you glad that Angella rather than Entrapta was sacrificed to the portal at the end of Season 3? Was it better that Glimmer got to deal with the grief of losing a loved one rather than Hordak in Season 4?

And were you happy that we got to see more of Entrapta after Season 3, or would you rather have seen a more emotional reunion between her and Hordak in the portal at the end?

What are your thoughts on the storyline I’ve outlined here? Do you agree that some of it sounds like what might have originally been intended? Would you have preferred some elements of it to what we actually got? Or do you think the changes made the show better? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments and thanks for reading my theories on the show’s storyline!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading my show theories and thoughts here! It's all purely speculative and based on my own observations of the show. These ideas were born from the feeling that there were a lot of odd moments and developments and inconsistencies that started from the end of Season 3 and continued in the last two seasons of the show. I feel quite certain that alterations were made to an earlier storyline, though of course it's debatable what these changes may have been and whether I'm anywhere near the truth with what I've discussed in this essay.
> 
> If you have any thoughts or opinions on what I've written, please share them in comments! Thank you to those who've left comments already.
> 
> If you've been following my writing, look out for a new post-canon Entrapdak fic coming soon!


End file.
